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Is tipping at a tipping point?
Traditionally, 15 percent was an average tip, with 20 percent for excellent service. Now, the suggested tips on many restaurant bills include 22 percent, 25 percent and even 30 percent. As FOX News correspondent Jonathan Serrie reports, it's a direct result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
If you’re thinking about whether to spread the holiday cheer by tipping this year, you might not be alone.
According to a new survey, fewer Americans are planning to tip their service providers this holiday season compared to last year.
Bankrate surveyed more than 2,400 U.S. adults in October to determine how many people were planning to tip for the holidays, who they would be tipping and how much.
Tipping is slightly down from last year
By the numbers:
According to the data, here’s a look at how many Americans who use each service are planning to tip service providers in the following categories this year:
- Housekeeper: 56%
- Childcare provider: 47%
- Teacher: 47%
- Landscaper/gardener/snow remover: 37%
- Mail carrier: 27%
- Trash/recycling collector: 21%
These figures were slightly down compared to last year, the survey found. The percentage of people planning to tip their childcare providers saw the most significant drop (from 55% to 47%) followed by teachers (53% to 47%).
What they're saying:
If you can't afford to tip everyone this holiday season, prioritize who really went above and beyond for you in 2025," Ted Rossman, a senior industry analyst at Bankrate, said in a statement. "For instance, maybe you have a really great babysitter or housekeeper or landscaping crew that you want to reward."
Man selecting 20% tip while using hand held credit card scanner at restaurant, Queens, New York. (Credit: Lindsey Nicholson/UCG/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
Tipping amounts were mostly flat from previous year
Dig deeper:
The tipping amounts from 2024 to 2025 were mostly flat.
Survey respondents said they would tip housekeepers $50, teachers $25, and mail carriers $20 – the same amounts as 2023 and 2024.
RELATED: Your 2025 holiday tipping guide: Who to tip and how much
Meanwhile, users said they would tip childcare providers $48 – slightly down from $50 in 2024.
However, the category of landscapers, gardeners and snow removers as well as that of trash/recycling collectors were exceptions.
Among people planning to tip providers in the landscaping category, the median tip jumped from $30 in 2024 to $50 in 2025, a 67% increase. While smaller, the median tip amount rose from $20 in 2024 to $25 in 2025, a 25% increase, in the trash/recycling collectors category.
Young people are more likely to tip out of obligation
Big picture view:
For some people, tipping is more a product of social expectations than a way to reward good service. Such sentiment is especially common among younger people, according to the findings.
The survey found that 44% of Gen Zers (ages 18-28) and 42% of millennials (ages 29-44) said they often feel obligated to tip compared to 38% of Gen Xers (ages 45-60) and 29% of baby boomers (ages 61-79).
RELATED: Tipping culture is "out of control," more Americans say in annual poll
"Younger consumers have grown up in a culture where tipping prompts are in more places than ever," Bobbi Rebell, a certified financial planner and consumer finance expert at Badcredit.org, said. "That said, feeling obligated is not the same as having the means to be as generous as you want to be or as generous as you feel pressure to be. The social pressure is real."
Many Americans (41%) also say tipping has gotten out of control, according to Bankrate’s annual Tipping Survey. That’s up from 35% the year prior.
When presented with the pre-entered tip screens at checkout, 2 in 5 Americans said they were annoyed with seeing it, and a quarter said they tip less or not at all.
"Moreover, 27% of Gen Zers, 35% of millennials, 45% of Gen Xers and 44% of baby boomers said they are annoyed with pre-entered tip screens," according to Bankrate.
The Source: The information for this story was provided by Bankrate. Their survey was conducted using an online interview administered to members of the YouGov Plc panel of individuals who have agreed to take part in surveys. The total sample size was 2,445 U.S. adults, of whom 1,895 planned to tip in at least one of the polled categories of service providers this holiday season. Fieldwork was undertaken between Oct. 27-29, 2025. Previous FOX Local reporting also contributed. This story was reported from Los Angeles.